If you're in New Orleans, it must be time to enjoy a nice drink. And as sure as the sun will rise, watering holes from the Marigny to Uptown and from Downtown to Mid-City are ready to lend a helping hand.

But what makes one bar or bartender better than another? The quality of drinks they pour is as good a place as any to start.

Each week we pick a popular local beverage and ask you to lend a hand by telling us who makes the hands-down, bottoms-up best.

Irish coffee is a cocktail consisting of hot coffee, Irish whiskey, and sugar, with double cream whipped until it begins to stiffen, floated on top. Irish coffee may be considered a variation on the hot toddy.

The original Irish coffee, according to lore, was invented by Joseph Sheridan, a head chef at Foynes, County Limerick. Foynes' port was the precursor to Shannon International Airport in the west of Ireland; the coffee was conceived after a group of American passengers disembarked at the airport on a miserable winter evening in the 1940s. Sheridan decided to add some whiskey to the coffee to warm the passengers. After being asked if they were being served Brazilian coffee, Sheridan told the passengers that it was Irish coffee.

Warm your glass with hot water before starting the drink. Empty the water out of the glass and pour in the Irish whiskey and stir in the sugar. Add a small amount of coffee and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add more coffee, stir, and top with a small amount of cream that has been lightly beaten with a whisk.

Now it's your turn, speak out and tell us who you think makes the best Irish Coffee in town.

Be sure to check back in Friday afternoon as the Ritz-Carlton's master mixologist Chris McMillian lends a hand and walks us through the history and proper preparation of these classic cocktails.